I've got an Android-powered smartphone, and I've pretty much got an app for everything. I've got an Android-powered tablet, too. Yes, it will run the majority of smartphone apps, but why are there so few apps that are either designed for tablets, or run really well on them? I could bring up the Android-powered Google TV, and the literally dozens of apps that you can get for it, but I'll be nice -- for now. Non-Market Tablets Android-powered tablets are relatively new to the market, and they're fragmented. There, I said it. But it's not Android that's fragmented, it's the "custom launchers" ...

When Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich was announced we were told that, like Honeycomb before it, more emphasis would be placed on the graphics processor. We even saw a new addition in the Developer section of the Settings that lets users "force GPU rendering". What is the GPU? The GPU is the Graphics Processing Unit. It's very much like the CPU, but instead of crunching numbers and taking care of tasks for the operating system and hardware, the GPU renders graphical information and puts it on the screen for you. The CPU can process graphical instructions just fine, but doing so takes time ...

What makes a smartphone "smart"? The apps of course! Every week we will feature some of the best newest or updated apps for the three big names in the mobile industry; iPhone, Windows Phone, and Android. We have sifted through hundred of apps and have deemed these 12 the most noteworthy for you, the smartphone enthusiast. To download any of these apps to your respective platform just click on the name of the app to launch the AppStore, Windows Marketplace, or Google Play. iPhone Kitchenator  A paid app that costs $0.99 Kitchenator is a unit convertor for nearly everything related ...

Cupcake, Doughnut, Eclair, Froyo, Gingerbread, Honeycomb, Ice Cream Sandwich. If this weren't Pocketnow you might think I was trying to figure out what to have for dessert, but you're a smart cookie and you know I'm talking about the different versions of the Android operating system. (Are you hungry? I'm hungry now.) Other than finding out what the next confection is going to be made into a statue and placed on the lawn in front of Google's HQ, do people really care what version of the OS they're running on their phones? I do. I want to run the latest and greatest on everything. I'm so ...

Before we dive too deep (after all, love is such a strong word) people like Android. About 51% of smartphone users are running Android on their device. By February 2012 there were over 300 million Android phones (not including tablets) in the hands of consumers, with an additional 850,000 phones and tablets being activated every day. Obviously Android is doing something right. But that's just people who like Android. Some of them may not even know they're running Android, but it gets the job done and they're not at all worried about the nuts and bolts of what make their gadgets tick. Why ...

If you've used an Android-powered smartphone or tablet for any length of time you've probably run into more than one instance where the "back" button didn't do what you were expecting it to. Sometimes the back button hides the keyboard, sometimes it takes you to the previous app or back to the desktop, and sometimes it navigates you back to previous screens in an app. Before we dive into how the back button works today, let's review a little history. Looking Back at Buttons Long ago -- okay, maybe it wasn't that long ago -- Android's had physical buttons on them. Usually there were four, ...

The ZTE Optik on Sprint may not be the most powerful tablet around, with a dual-core 1.2Ghz Snapdragon under its hood, but its $100-on-contract pricing makes it a whole heck of a lot more affordable than competitors like the eight-inch Xyboard on Verizon. For those of you who have become fans of the Optik, there's a maintenance update headed your way to deliver a whole bunch of fixes to keep the Honeycomb tablet working in peak condition. Today Sprint announced the first software update to be released for the Optik, bringing the tablet up to system software B09. The changelog the carrier ...

The HTC One X, the Taiwanese phone maker's flagship Android phone, has a "fantastic" "infinity screen", as Brandon concluded in our review. However, some owners are having issues with the phone. If you head over to the XDA Developers thread at the source link below you will see that people are complaining about screen flickering. There are also some reports of backlight flickering too and, while some have the issues, others can't reproduce them. There's also a theory according to which this is all just a driver problem and an over-the-air update should fix everything. Check out the video ...

Ever since Ice Cream Sandwich came out, we've seen plenty of apps updated to include new functionality you'll only see on Android 4.0. Granted, there was the same sort of thing going on before to an extent, like special Honeycomb versions of popular apps, but that's not making us any less anxious to see ICS finally released for our existing Android smartphones and tablets, so that we can enjoy all these latest app features. While there's nothing much to be done about speeding that up, in the meantime Google's released an update for its Android Gmail app, bringing some of those ...

This is the first in a continuing series of articles on controversial or disputed topics in mobile technology. We're calling it the "Brutally Honest Question Corner." The leaks have transitioned from a few drips to a sizable deluge: the release of the latest in Samsung's popular Galaxy S line, one of the most anticipated Android smartphones ever, seems to be just over the horizon. On the eve of this product launch, Samsung seems to be directing more and more resources to strengthening its branding efforts. And I've never been less interested. Like a lot of gadget lovers, I was first ...

Watch this week's Android Revolution as we go through what's hot and what's not inside the world of Google's Android project. We start today's show going all the recent leaks about the Samsun Galaxy S III and the possibility of mixing a quad-core processor with LTE connectivity for Samsung's next-generation Exynos processor. We later go through all the recent leaks regarding a Google Nexus tablet built by Asus. We then discuss all this week's coverage for Android and detail all the recent ROM developments for HTC and Samsung. We end the hot section talking about Sprint and HTC's event ...

Samsung, in a seeming attempt to have the most tablets on the market at one time, has just recently released their Galaxy Tab 7.7 with LTE from Verizon. Similar in most respects to the original Galaxy Tab 7.7 (you can read our review on this variation here), this newest rev also includes LTE/CDMA radios from Verizon. An exciting form factor with a high-speed data connection, how could we resist taking a look? But can it survive against the current tablet market? Were any of the problems mentioned in our previous coverage resolved in this version? Read our review to find out! BOX CONTENTS ...

The New iPad is already out there and if Verizon is your favorite carrier you are able to grab one. The Amazon Kindle Fire is one of the most popular Android tablets on the market and the Galaxy Tab 10.1 from Samsung is also a 4G LTE-enabled choice on Big Red. We're putting the latest Android addition to Verizon's tablet line-up, the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7, against the aforementioned alternatives. We're taking a look at form factors -- whether you want to go with a large, 9.7/10-incher, a smaller 7.7-inch dimension or the smallest size of 7-inches on the Fire -- usability, user interface ...

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 is one of the most useful tablets that I've had the opportunity to get to own. The 7.7's size lends itself well to carrying around with you almost everywhere you go, and is not so big that it's a chore to do so. Unfortunately, it runs Android 3.2 Honeycomb and rooting has been a little complicated. After quite a bit of research I've been able to put together a method that's relatively easy, tested to work on the WiFi version of the tablet, and doesn't require KIES or Odin. (If you've got an HSPA+ or LTE version and want to try we'd love to hear your results in ...

It's well-nigh impossible to look at Sony's Tablet P without conjuring up some memories of Kyocera's Echo from last year. After all, both designs employ dual touchscreens in a convertible layout that lets you collapse the device while carrying it. Kyocera's attempt never caught-on in a big way, so we're anxious to see if Sony has what it takes to succeed where others have failed. We'll be getting our chance quite soon, with Sony announcing that the Tablet P is set to land on AT&T this Sunday, March 3. Even when folded closed, there's no denying that the Tablet P is bit of a beast. Besides ...

Back during the CES, we learned that Toshiba was planning to bring its 10.1-inch AT200 tablet to the United States as the Excite 10. While we had pricing information for the tablet, set to be available as a $530 16GB model or a $600 32GB version, we didn't hear any stabs at a US launch date more precise than sometime around the middle of this quarter. Today, Toshiba announces the tablet's availability as well as gives its name a slight adjustment. Instead of the Excite 10, the manufacturer will now release the tablet in the States as the Excite 10 LE. Toshiba didn't give a reason for the ...

We are seeing a ton of new Android tablets revealed to the world at the MWC, but don't forget that some managed to break cover early, first showing-up at last month's CES. That was the case with Samsung and the 7.7-inch version of its Galaxy Tab, which we learned would be making a retail appearance on Verizon LTE. Since then, we've had the opportunity to check out the international version of the Tab 7.7, available as both a WiFi-only model and one with HSPA+ connectivity, but the details for the LTE version on Verizon hadn't been available. Today the carrier comes forward with a release ...

Despite promising an official Android 4.x Ice Cream Sandwich update for the Transformer TF101 to land this month, Asus didn't deliver just yet. Not that we're already at the end of the month but a recent Facebook post seems to shed some light on the upcoming refresh. According to Asus Singapore, the Ice Cream Sandwich update for the Asus Transformer "will be ready within the Feb/March 2012 period". Best case scenario: a couple of weeks. Worst case scenario: a tad more than a month. Whenever that happens you will receive an over-the-air update notification and you'll be able to finally get ...

After introducing it at CES, Asus has (quietly) created a special landing page for the Eee Pad MeMo 171 on its website. Crossover between a tablet and a mobile phone, it comes with a MeMIC Bluetooth headset that allows users to place calls, read messages, and listen to music. However, this bundle option  that makes the MeMo 171 quite unique among tablet computers -- will vary depending on country. While it is ICS upgradable, this device now runs on Androit 3.2 Honeycomb. Other specifications include: 7-inch display, 1280 x 800 resolution, 1.2GHz dual-core Qualcomm 8260 processor, 1GB ...

Have a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and you are experiencing touch-related problems? If you decided to stick with a stock configuration or you're running on an Android 3.x Honeycomb ROM -- though there are several Ice Cream Sandwich custom ROMs available, including the official CyanogenMOD 9 pre-alpha -- you should check this application out! TouchScreenTune might (or might not) remind you of those registry tweaks from the Windows Mobile days (oh, AdvancedConfig...); the application basically allows you to custom tune the way your tablet reacts to touch. You have to be rooted in order to take ...

Google had a huge booth last year at the Mobile World Congress where many phones (and back then only the Motorola Xoom) were showcased at manufacturer- and software-maker-dedicated mini-booths. If you want to take a look at how things were one year ago, check out the video of the Google booth at MWC 2011 below. El Goog is preparing to have yet another blast this year at the Congress. Androids are counting down to the event, packing and unpacking goodies, preparing for the show. From the looks of it -- if the graphic representation is of any indication -- they will not be missing last ...

Acer Australia and New Zealand recently confirmed that the official Ice Cream Sandwich update for the Iconia Tab A500 will be rolling out in April. Acer America not only confirmed the timeframe but also threw the Iconia Tab A100 in the game. The seven-inch Tegra2-powered Honeycomb tablet will receive its official Ice Cream Sandwich update from the manufacturer in the middle of month April. With the Iconia Tab A500 scheduled for the same period, the Iconia Tab A200 remains the only Acer tablet to have already received its Android 4.0 official refresh. To all Acer Iconia Tab A500 and A100 ...

Just a couple of days after the official introduction of the Galaxy Tab 2 (7.0), Samsung's first Ice Cream Sandwich-powered tablet, the company has announced the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus N for the German market. The move follows the one related to the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 N, where Samsung released the tablet especially for the German market, with modifications to avoid infringement on Apple's patents. Inside there's a 1.2GHz dual-core processor and 16GB of internal memory (plus the microSD expansion slot); there's a seven-inch display on the front with a resolution of 1024 x 600, ...

Apple is still dominating the tablet market though Android-powered slates are starting to grab a rather considerable slice of the market. It will be interesting to see what the iPad 3 can bring to combat the army of Android tablets with Ice Cream Sandwich and powerful processors this year. However, as far as South Korea is concerned, Samsung's home market, the Apple iPad is outselling the South Korean manufacturer's tablet offerings. The (roughly) 700,000 Apple iPad units sold last year join the other tablets designed in California that existed on the South Korean market before the ...

If you have a Motorola Droid Xyboard 10.1 or 8.2 Android tablet on Verizon, you should prepare to see a couple of update notifications in the coming weeks. First you'll see an update that will bring build 1.6.0M_279 and together with that, an improved browser performance, better touch response, maintaining data connection while toggling between WiFi and some more. Both tablets will get the same update, except for the "Stylus enhancements" which will only roll out to the 10.1 model. Within two weeks from rolling out the update above, Verizon will let loose an update which will transform the ...